The Sphere: The Phantom of the West Rim

  “They’re might be have teleported somewhere.”

  “I knew that. Their smell vanished in the air maybe because both teleported while falling but that doesn’t mean they’re vanished forever till I can’t smell them again. No matter how far they would go I assured you that I could smell them with Amarok. But this is different, they’re vanished as if they teleported into another realm.”

  “Do you think they’re still alive?”

  “Maybe and most likely so, but whatever happens to them or where they are now it’s likely they did not have a better fate than us.” said Aska “Geez, let me wrong as usual.”

  ***

  Scarlett felt moist as she touched the knob, reminding her that there is nothing here except silence. And when she opened it the only thing they found was stretching darkness beyond the front yard. No wind was feels on their face just stuffy air in their breath.

  Scarlett raised a hand and that orb of light floating high into the air. At once it burst into countless number of fiery light, scattered all over the place like a swarm of fireflies, invaded the darkness and uncovered what lies before them. Then to their amazement they saw a city ruins before them, gloom and mysterious under fiery light. The terrain looks bumpy and almost all structures and houses look skewed, even some of them like swallowed by earth. Most of the building still intact and undamaged, few were destroyed and some look weird because it looks like piling up each other. Wonder what happened to this city in the past.

  They were surprised and amazed by what they saw now but on the other hand they also horrified to imagining that their fate will be same as this city, alone in this silence and darkness, only waiting for death and their bones will never be found by anyone.

  “Underground city?” said Rey haltingly.

  “No, this is not underground city it’s just a common one, was.”

  “How did you know?”

  “Did you see that?” said Scarlett, pointing to a ruined tower at the end of their sight.

  “It was looks like spires.” answered Rey.

  “If you’re living under the rock canopy, would you build something tall like that?” said Scarlett. “Not only that, most of the house we found here had a roof, it was usual thing if you had to deal with sun and seasons while here there’s only darkness and cold.”

  “So you mean this city was on the surface before?”

  “Yes and somehow it was sunken underground and become what we saw right now.” said Scarlett “However this ruins looks accumulated.”

  “Accumulated?”

  “Dunno, it just I felt that some building had different structures than the others. Like there were three civilizations, three towns piling up here, maybe.”

  “Or three ages.” said Rey.

  Scarlett looked at the boy beside him, there’s a feeling of worry when she heard his words. “Maybe,”

  Rey and Scarlett walked down to the ruins. It was lonely place, no lives or moves around them just abandoned building and no sounds except of their feet. But somehow they sense an eerie feeling from unreached darkness far there. Suddenly Rey get stumbled by sunken debris and Scarlett helped him. And as he stood they found themselves in front of a statue, it was slanted and leaning on some falling debris and there was great crack on the stone legs like it could split at any time. Then to her surprised, Scarlett bent down and looked at the symbols on the pedestal.

  “It couldn’t be.” said Scarlett look astonished.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “These symbols, I’ve seen the picture of it before.” said Scarlett. “Some archeologist discovered a relic with symbols like this carved on it. Old speech they assumed it, dated before the reign of Astarte.”

  “Which means?”

  “Which mean it was very old, about six or seven thousand years old or even older than that. Too bad I couldn’t read it. In fact no one in our time could, for this is a dead language.” said Scarlett, as he wipes the dirt on the pedestal and revealed the symbols as a whole.

  Rey bent down in surprise. The unknown symbol now as a whole, somehow could be recognized by his knowledge as if it was a common letter for him.

  “The statue was b-b ...” said Rey, as he wiped the remaining dirt on some symbol, “… built to commemorate Belthazzar, Hero of Acronesia.”

  “Did you read that stone?” asked Scarlett wondered, “How?”

  “I was wonder for myself since comes here. I’ve been able to speak your language. And somehow I could understand all the words and letters like I read my own, including this.”

  “Since came here?!”

  “Well, since comes to Ishtar.” said Rey.

  Scarlett knew the boy was hiding something even it looks clear for her than Eorin did. But for now she more wondered about how he could read these symbols.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” said Scarlett, pretended nothing strange about him. “Did you say Acronesia?”

  “Well, that was written here.”

  Scarlett rose slowly and trembly looked up at the dimness above with dread and shock.

  “What’s wrong?” asked Rey curious.

  “How could you read a dead language but didn’t know something widely-known like Acronesia?” said Scarlett still looks upward. Rey doesn’t know what to answer and before a word spoken from his mouth Scarlett speaks again with blue fiery kindled over her palm. “It was a lost city of famous tales and legends. There’s no actual record about this city but it always described as a civilization with advanced technologies, far more than we had today. And some even told that they’re the one who invented the Sphere.”

  “So how it lost into underground?”

  “Swallowed.” answered Scarlett, as she let off the blue flare from her hand like she was released a huge firefly to fly away.

  “So it was sunken underground.”

  “No, I said it was swallowed.”

  “S-swallowed? By earth?” asked Rey.

  “No, Terranvord.” said Scarlett. She looks more uneasy as she stared above.

  “Terran ... what?”

  “Giant worm ... very very giant.” said Scarlett.

  Rey immediately follow her eyes. There far above him he like saw a dome of pale flesh with the veins as big as a pipe, looks purple by the blue radiant and extends to the unexplored darkness like it was giant tunnel.

  “Now I’m really far from home.”

  ***

  For many miles of rail everything around them seemed quiet, only whispers of voices about them and a murmur of prejudices. And not only suspicion in the eyes but they also keep a distance, they prefer to take a seat away from them, close to the entrance if they could be, for peril never stopped for the hunted, so they said.

  Aska bowed his head and sometimes he looked out the window. In his mind, perhaps two of them were suddenly appeared behind the windows, tried to chase the train with tired face. But still the window only shows a faint reflection of him with empty plain and forest slowly away to behind.

  “Anyone ever had bad experience in their trip.” said Marius, who suddenly joint at their table.

  “Yeah, but not everyone deal with someone who frozen entire cars and barbecued by fire breathing dragon at the same time.”

  “We have fought together like old comrades, yet we don’t know each other. I’m Marius Centrinus, green infantry 2nd grade.”

  “I’m Eorin and he is Aska. We’re both on vacation.” said Eorin.

  “Marius huh, for an Ishtar Soldier your name like someone who came from Azgalor.” said Aska with suspicion.

  “I’m a Homefarer. I lived in Namtar and bear the same name since I was five, since our King Virenas and their President Theodorus were good friends.” replied Marius. “You said you’re on vacation, where’s your destination?”

  “We’re ...”

  “We’re going to Kilvert, north of Khatar.” answered Eorin quickly “How about you?”

  “I stopped by this train, just new guy on the new
post.” Marius smiled proudly while showing his uniform.

  Looking at his green uniform they both know that Marius nothing more than a low-ranking infantry. So was his lost sword in her remembrance, it was standard sword of Ishtar Soldier, one leaf carved on the wooden hilt without any decorative nor tassel to represent special degree, nothing special on it. However, his Spheres and his style on the battle had shown that he was more than he look, without regards the fact that Iceberg and him knowing each other like they had their battle unfinished in the past.

  “If I may know what kind of trip do you have?” asked Marius again.

  “It just little trip in day off.” answered Eorin.

  “Day off?” laughed Marius “Looking at your age, I’m sure you’re from The Grove. And I know these day kids like you must start to reopen the book for final exam that will be held in less than a month.” said Marius. “Actually what are you doing till professionals like Iceberg hunted you to kill?”

  “I even thought that he came after you, considering you know each other.”

  “If he's trying to kill me he just needs to swing his cold sword. But instead of that he freeze entire car just to shut you all and don’t forget that he summon his puppies to prey you.” said Marius. “Me, I’m just a man who stood between you and him.”

  “Then how about Scarlett, how do you know each other?”

  “We’re just a friend in the Grove, like you both. She had more progress on her career while I’m just lazy guy,” said Marius. “How kids like you could be along with her?”

  “She’s … our instructor, and we’re on study trip.”

  “Just four of you?” asked Marius.

  “Yeah, we’re just four. Do you mind with that? This is modern day.” said Aska.

  Marius laughed again.

  “What’s so funny?” asked Eorin.

  “You know, we could be like this all the way up to Khatar, or we could start to trust each other.”

  “Then why you don’t start first?”

  “I simply would. But for now it’s not me who draw those assassins and brought danger to this train, it was you, or yours.”

  “Believe me. If I knew what they’re after we will told you but fortunately we don’t.” said Eorin.

  “For now I considered that you’re telling the truth. Besides Scarlett wouldn’t bring you in if she knew those assassins would join this trip.” said Marius. “Maybe an hour we get into Khatar. Get some rest.”

  ***

  “How we could be inside the giant worm?” asked Rey.

  “When we falling I’m used Silverhare by instinct, at that time the Sphere would react itself to found best space to teleport. If I may guess this worm might be slumbered around the ravine, covered by cliff and unnoticed by anyone or things for years or even more than century. At that time this womb, this belly or wherever we are was the safest place for us to teleport.” said Scarlett. “It’s possible that the train crashed down to the bottom, and like alarm it had woken it up and then this worm moving underground. Since it was gigantic, one stretch of its muscle could expand about meters or even tens, deprived the effective range of Silverhare to teleport us back into sunlight. It’s been positive that Sphere Silverhare of mine didn’t detect any space outside after first quaver.”

  “So we are trapped?”

  “More to buried alive in the center of nowhere.”

  “That’s very good news.” said Rey. “Is there a way for us to get out of here?”

  “If this worm comes to surface we could have, beside the maw was as wide as Sneakers field we could get out easily though the possibilities was very small.”

  “Really, how small?” asked Rey.

  “Almost zero if I could say. From the legend I know, this worm spent most of the time in slumbering and only comes to surface once in every thousand year or more, at least it was that had been recorded. The oldest record was the tales of this lost city that mostly estimated about 4000 or 3000 years before Common Ages. Legend said the city was swallowed entirely but I supposed only little part of it like our ground while the bigger part the great worm had destroyed it. The second record was about 1000 before common ages, appeared in small farm outskirt of the little city of Valgorod which now is known as Midgard, the capital city of Federation of Azgalor. The third one was appeared in about year 2000 in the city of Nuria, devoured few blocks. Now it made sense why these ruins look jumbled and accumulated. These ruins at least, consist of three cultures from three different times.” said Scarlett.

  “How about the fourth?” asked Rey.

  Scarlett turned and looked into the shadows surround. She stood alert and tense, the sword she held but nothing came out of the shadows, only silence under fainted light.

  “What’s up?”

  “No, it just my feeling.” said Scarlett still looked at the darkness around then she turned to Rey. “Well, the fourth one was happened about 160 years ago exactly in year 4964. This worm comes to surface outskirt of Annadora, the city of Illitea Nobledom, and that’s when …” Scarlett paused.

  “What?”

  “That’s when Lord Azriel came into the world, born by this worm, if it could say so.”

  “Yeah, I’ve read about it. I thought it was just another fairy tale in your world.”

  “Our world?” said Scarlett wondered.

  “No, I mean hard to believe that there’s a man who was born of worm, even if it was gigantic one. But since we’re in its belly I don’t think it was just fairy tale to scare a little kid anymore.” said Rey, then he thought of something, “Hey how about the fifth? You said that this worm comes to surface in the span of thousands year but the fourth was happened about hundred years ago. So if I’m not miscalculated this big guy was come to surface about less than two centuries.”

  “That’s what had been recorded. This worm is quite big so if he comes to the surface surely everyone could see it appears, and if they were not, this worm would always leave a trace, a large and deep pit hole that could last for several years. So if you ask my opinion that record was pretty accurate.” said Scarlett “As for your question the fifth was happened about thirty years ago and indeed, I think the same about you, that it was an anomaly. The site was close to Runeglade but no one seen it in live, only a great hole that the deepness lead to the darkness. At that time, the Continental War was heating up so no one conduct deep research but to determine whether that hole was constructed by man or done by nature, and this big worm came out to conclusion.”

  “Do you know what makes this worm come to surface in a closer time span?”

  “I don’t know, no one knew. After the Battle of Elderon was ended, many scholar of Runeglade conduct extensive research on the hole but till now they don’t make any progress on …” Scarlett paused looking around with tense and at once draw her sword to alertness.

  “What?”

  “Do you hear something?”

  “No, why?” said Rey.

  Her eyes and ears still fixed on the darkness. She felt there’s something moving closer, hiding behind the shadows beyond fiery blue and surrounds them in great numbers. Scarlett stepped forward, slowly, leaving him few step behind in silence and incautious.

  Suddenly something leaps out of the darkness behind and bites Rey on the shoulder. At once he screamed in pain and panicky spinning to nowhere with hand crept to the back to reach the creature. It was long and slimy with pale skin under blue light, the more he tried to get rid it off the more the pain he got. With swift move Scarlett had come behind and with one quick slash of sword she cut it. The lengthy part of it was writhing on the ground while its head remain on his shoulder.

  “Calm down!” told her while hold his shoulder.

  He calmed down immediately, yet he yelled in pain when she revoked the creature on his shoulder, for the bite was quite deep. Now they stared at strange creature, though it was quite familiar for their disgust. By the knowledge of their own it was looks like bloodsucking worms, a leech with
slimy pale skin but had size to their arm, only mouth appeared on it with tiny sharp teeth filled the mouth and four mandibles covered in blood.

  Soon fear fell upon them, for now they appeared in greater number, slithering in swarm like the plain have pulsed. Tens of leeches leaping up and attack them both. Scarlett move swiftly to evade and at once slashing them, great movements and precision she had but looks graceful swaying her sword as if she was dancing with it.

  On the other side Rey seemed had troublesome to protecting himself, not only he inexperienced in such situation but also he had possessed no weapon. The only thing he did was kicking those which were near to him and grab them to throw before they had bites him again. As a result more leeches stick to him this time from shoulder to arm. But Scarlett deftly aid him by cutting them off, though the head-part still stuck on him.

  They’re coming more and more. By sword and energy shots she took 3 to 5 of them in a row. While Rey in his confusion and worried couldn’t even spark a flame from his hand, he just did evade them like before. At the end he had cornered and accidentally nudged the statue of Belthazar to it fell and ruptured. But then, of all despair and hardship that befell on him he found something among the rubbles, something he very needed at this time – if it was as he thought. He grabbed it immediately and swung it to the leeches surround. So heavy it was till he pulled away by his own swing, but it wasn’t mace or any heavy weapon. It was a sword but the rubbles still cemented on the blade and made it heavier than common, and the hilt was long, exceed his elbow.

  But no matter how weighed it was, the urge to survive gave him power to lift the sword and swung it, though he moves like mad – if not get the empty ground then hit the ruins. But after many swings the sword seems got lighter. Hit after hit, the rubbles on the blade eroded and gradually show the original shape of the sword.

  The blade was curved and slender, like a sword forged in the eastern land where the first sunrise shone upon cherry blossom. The blade had length at man’s arm but the tip was almost even as if the sword was broken or something. And since the hilt was very long – only few inches shorter than the blade, the sword was very light, even lighter than Tyvelon he had ever held. Even so, it seems doesn’t affect his ability. He was still strike like mad, sometimes hit but more often missed.

  Slowly but sure they’re overwhelmed and the swarms seem never ran out of number instead they waved endlessly. Now around them they found the leeches were already writhing all over the place with creeping sounds in their ears, from ground to ruins, under the light and behind the darkness. Looks like their live will end in this darkness.